The Rest Is History

There are estimated to be around 16 thousand churches in England alone. But which are the finest in the UK? Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook are joined by the director of Friends of Friendless Churches, Rachel Morley, to decide a top ten. They also discuss some of the listeners’ favourites...

Tom Holland is joined by Ali Ansari to discuss the most influential mistresses in history. The definition of success is to impact history, despite often humble beginnings. Recorded live at the London Podcast Festival. A Goalhanger Films & Left Peg Media production Produced by Vasco Andrade Exec Producer Tony Pastor *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod...

In 480 BC, 300 Spartans made a famous stand at Thermopylae, as hordes of Persian soldiers, led by Xerxes, seemed set to succeed in their aim of conquering Greece. However, although Leonidas and his men were defeated, only a short while later the Greek navy, against superior Persian forces, routed them in the Straits of Salamis, a turning point in the war as the Persians were steadily swept out of Greece. Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook discuss the epic battle and its outcome...

Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook continue their celebration of the 2,500th anniversary of the Persian invasion of Greece. Today, they look at two battles which have echoed down the millennia: Thermopylae, the very archetype of a heroic defeat, and Salamis, the great naval clash which saved Greece from Persian conquest. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod...

The fictional British agent James Bond returns to our cinema screens this week, but what do the history and evolution of Ian Fleming’s iconic character tell us about our changing society? Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland explore 007 in both book and cinematic form...

As Angela Merkel bows out of German politics, Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland explore the surprisingly colourful world of Germany’s Chancellors since the Second World War. It’s a story of rebels, exiles, Nazis, chain-smokers, the colossal bulk of Helmut Kohl and the East German youth of the future Frau Merkel. And to Tom’s relief, there’s lots of Christianity...

In today’s episode, Tom and Dominic are joined by Dr Eleanor Barraclough as they sail across the Atlantic in a dragon-ship, bound for the epic world of the Norse sagas. What society did the Vikings set up in Iceland? How did they get to America? Why were they always so violent? *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod...

Something wicked this way comes. Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook take a deep dive into the real history of Scotland’s most notorious king. Was he really the murderous man of Shakespeare’s writing? Plus the boys examine the play for its insight into the politics of the time in which it was written. And we discover Dominic’s missed vocation...

WARNING: THIS PODCAST INCLUDES SPOILERS ABOUT THE NEW JAMES BOND MOVIE. DO NOT LISTEN UNTIL YOU’VE SEEN THE FILM. What does the new Bond movie tell us about modern masculinity? And where does the franchise go from here? Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland share notes on No Time to Die. A Goalhanger Films & Left Peg Media production Produced by Harry Lineker Exec Producer Tony Pastor Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Email: restishistorypod@gmail...

The world’s most famous classicist, Professor Mary Beard, joins Tom and Dominic to discuss how the legacy of classical Greece and Rome has been interpreted and re-interpreted over the past millennium and a half. They range from Dante’s Satan snacking on Julius Caesar’s assassins in Hell to recent demands in the United States that Classics itself should be cancelled...